Florida bicycle news and comment, with a special eye toward
making streets and paths more congenial to riders.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Transit tackles bike access on trains

Matthew Toro reports two tidbits on Transit Miami that should encourage bicyclists who use Metrorail. He says rail maintenance superintendent Jerry Blackman told the Citizens Transportation Advisory Committee that transit is working out how to handle bikes throughout the trains once new cars are put into service, instead of only on the last car under present rules. Blackman also said that cars with bike accommodations inside will be marked on the outside to identify the cars. For details on this and more, click on Transit Miami.

You may recall that Transit promised, oh, five or six years ago, to require bike racks in the new cars when bids were sought. A builder for the new cars was chosen last year, but that choice hit an obstacle in federal procurement rules.

Toro, as a citizen member of the Bicycle-Pedestrian Advisory Committee, put forward several proposals in recent months for improved bike access on the trains. This generated a lot of comment and Transit seems to be taking the issue seriously. Thanks all around, everyone!